he seems to have been a force forex tending debt ceiling in order to gain some time to negotiate. i think all of that argues in favor of some time to get the right things done. >> chuck gabriel, how did you read or hear the president's passage where he talked about medicare and social security and he said the commitments we make to each other through medicare, medicaid, social security, these things do not zap our initiative, they strengthen it. they do not make us a nation of takers, they free us and make this country great. that felt to me like a bit of a stake in the ground by the president. >> yeah. you know, the president last week cast doubt on whether republicans believe in the principles and functions of social security and medicare, etc. so in some respects i think this is kind of a new, improved version of what president clinton did when he was facing a republican congress. he was talking about family values back in the '90s. he said i want a government that values families. and as the president said, we don't need to relitigate this today, but we need a government that